Paint roller with detachable drip catcher



Dec. 3, 1963 N. PREZIOSO, JR 3,112,729

PAINT ROLLER WITH DETACHABLE DRIP CATCHER Filed May 17, 1961 12/1 5711 70/? F W/Cfi/OLJS pea/050,]

United States Patent 3,112,729 PAINT ROLLER Wl'lii DETACHABLE @ATCHER Nicholas Prezioso, in, 1822 12th Ave, Rockford, Ell

assignor of one-half to Edgar Paul Baugherty, Rockford, Ill.

Filed May 17, E61, tier. No. 111L686 4 Claims. (Ql. 15-23(3) This invention relates to a new and improved paint roller drip catcher.

Drip catchers have been devised heretofore, but all that have come to my attention have had serious drawbacks, mainly from the practical use standpoint. For instance, many afforded protection only to a certain degree when the operator was careful to keep the catcher most advantageously disposed beneath the roller, which, of course, meant that the catcher interfered too much with the eflicient operation of the roller and it is easy to see why such attachments were not popular. Others were designed to be adjusted by the operator from time to time to avoid the objection mentioned in regard to the first type, but they required usually the addition of a latch mechanism at sizeable extra cost, and most purchasers refused to pay such a high price for an attachment of this general character. A third form had the catchers designed to be applied in either of two positions to cooperate with either side of the roller, but there again that involved extra cost which the average purchaser was reluctant to pay for such an attachment. Many so-called shields and guards were also objectionable from the standpoint that they were open at the ends and were therefore not adapted to retain even a small amount of paint without danger of its running or dripping from either end, thereby defeating the whole purpose of such an attachment for a paint roller. It is therefore the principal object of my invention to provide a drip catcher of simple and inexpensive construction and one which is adapted to be applied easily to the carrier frame for use always in the same position in relation to the roller and handle and so designed that it affords a high degree of protection against dripping and spraying without interfering with the efiicient operation of the roller when painting either ceilings or walls, the catcher retaining whatever paint is caught therein and being adapted to be easily emptied from time to time from one end by merely tipping the catcher that way, so that there is a minimum wasting of paint and no likelihood of any paint dripping from the catcher onto the floor.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which- FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the drip catcher before attachment to the carrier frame of the paint roller;

FIG. 2 is a side view, with portions broken away, of a paint roller showing the drip catcher of my invention mounted on the carrier frame thereof, and

FIG. 3 is an end view of FIG. 2.

The same reference numerals are applied to corresponding parts in these three views.

Referring to the drawing, the reference numeral 4 designates the drip catcher attachment of my invention generally fastened by means of a bottom spring clip 5 and an end spring clip 6 to the horizontal portion 7 and vertical portion 8, respectively, of the carrier frame 9 of a paint roller 16, roller 19 being mounted on an elongated axle portion 11 provided on one end of the one-piece wire frame 9 in the usual way, and this axle portion being in spaced parallel relation to the horizontal portion 7 previously mentioned. The vertical end portion 12 of the carrier frame remote from the axle portion 11 is parallel with the vertical portion 8' previously mentioned and is on a line passing through the middle portion of the axle poriii i232? tion -11 and has a handle 13 fixed on the extremity thereof. A sheepskin covering with the wool exposed is usually provided for the roller 16 as indicated at 14.

The drip catcher 4 is in the form of a generally V- shaped sheet metal trough l5, the upwardly diverging side walls 1% and 17 of which reach to a level x-y slightly below the axle portion 11 and are substantially tangent with respect to but spaced equally from the opposite sides of the roller, as indicated at 13, the included angle between these sides 16 and 17 being approidmately 60, this general form and relationship with respect to the roller 18 having been found by long practical usage to give the best results under all operating conditions on ceilings and walls. End walls 19 and 20 are approximately one-third the height of the side walls 16 and 17 and preferably no higher than the level O() of the bottom of the roller it? as shown in FIG. 2, and as also is apparent from the end view FIG. 3, because in that way I provide sufhcient storage capacity in the trough 15 without interfering with the easy application and removal of the drip catcher. The spacing at l8 of the side walls '1617 is a further factor in enabling easy application and removal of the drip catcher because it permits raising the drip catcher sufficiently to disengage the spring catch 5 from the horizontal portion 7 of the carrier frame 9 after the drip catcher has been moved horizontally enough to disengage the end catch 6 from the vertical portion 8 of the carrier frame 9. The fiat bottom wall 21 is spaced even farther from the bottom of the roller 14 than the side walls 16 and 17, so that there is nothing to interfere withupward movement of the catcher 4 if the operator happens to unfasten clip 5- first by suchupward movement. On the other hand, if clip 6 is unfastened first by lateral movement of the catcher 4 the end wall 19 is low enough to clear the lsottom of the roller 10, and clip 5 sliding on the horizontal portion 7 of the frame 9 has ample room to do so without interference by the vertical lower end portion 12.

In operation, the drip catcher attachment 4 is quickly and easily attachable to and removable from the frame 9 due to the unique design and construction of the trough 15 in relation to the roller 10. No matter which one of several procedures the operator adopts in the assembling or disassembling or disassembling operation he or she cannot run into any difiiculty. In most prior devices that was not true; in many cases one needed a set of printed instruct-ions to read and follow to apply or remove the attachment. In FIG. 3 the line CC is intended to represent a ceiling surface to illustrate how the operator has almost as good a view from below of the area being painted with the drip catcher in place as witnout, and meanwhile the catcher protects the operator and the floor from drippings and fine spra, so that the operator does not have to exercise so much caution in regard to how much paint is applied to the roller between operations and can accordingly work faster. The lines WW drawn at 45 degrees with respect to the plane of the frame 9 serve to illustrate how the drip catcher 4 performs its function when Walls are being painted. In conclusion:

(l) The drip catcher 4- can be used effectively painting walls as well as ceilings and can be used whereever a paint roller is generally usable without changing the position of the trough with respect to the roller at any time.

(2) The drip catcher practically eliminates the necessity of spreading tarpaulins or papers on the floor thereby saving trouble and expense while greatly facilitating the painting jo b all around.

(3) The drip catcher saves paint by eliminating waste, and any paint accumulating in the trough 15 can be quicl'ly emptied back into the pan or tray directly or onto the roller by inverting the trough over it while the roller is over the pan, but what is most important, it prevents splattering or spraying of paint on the painter.

(4) The drip catcher is so simple to attach that anyone can use it without reference to printed instructions and it requires no special skill or practice.

(5) The two spring clips 5 and 6 are all that is necessary for support of the drip catcher on the frame 9 and these hold the trough from moving with respect to the roller 1Q in any direction, there being no need for the rough 5 shifting with respect to the roller at any time.

(6) There are no loose parts, like nuts or bolts which might be lost or mislaid; the unit is an integral assembly and is ready for instant use the moment it is picked up.

(7) When removed from the frame 9, the drip catcher can be used as an edger, using either of the side walls 5 and 17, the catcher being held in one hand while the painter holds the brush in the other hand, the trough l5 catching and retaining drippings while the catcher is used in this way as an edger.

It is believed the foregoing description conveys a good understanding of the objects and advantages or" my invention. The appended Claims have been drawn to cover all legitimate modifications and adaptations.

I claim:

1. in combination, a paint roller of elongated cylindrical form having an axle extending axially therethrough, a radially disposed supporting and operating handle extending in radially spaced relation to the axle and roller intermediate the ends thereof and having a rod rigid with and extending laterally from the inner end of the handle in parallel relation to the axle and having a right angle outer end portion parallel to one end of the roller and rigidly connected with one end of the axle, an elongated generally rectangular trough that has a flat horizontal bottom wall and upwardly diverging side walls and parallel end walls closing the ends of the trough and extending upwardly from the bottom wall a fraction of the height of the side Walls, said trough being open on top and longer and wider than the roller and in the operative position of said trough being disposed in spaced parallel relationship to said roller between it and the laterally extending rod with the open top of said trough toward the roller, and a pair of fasteners for rigidly but detachably securing said trough in its single fixed operative relationship to said handle and roller, one of said fasteners fixed on the bottom of said trough intermediate the ends there- 5, of and detachably engaging said laterally extending rod, and the other fixed on one end of said trough and detachably engaging the right angle outer end portion of said laterally extending rod.

2. The combination set forth in claim 1, wherein the upwardly diverging side walls of said trough are disposed in closely spaced relation to opposite sides of said roller in the operative position of said trough, their upper longitudinal edges being then in approximately the same horizontal plane as said axle and at least that one of the end walls of said trough on which one of said fasteners is mounted being then wholly beneath the roller.

3. The combination set forth in claim 1 wherein the fastener on the end of said trough is of a generally U- shaped spring clip form and engageable onto and disengageable from the right angle outer end portion of said laterally extending rod by linear movement bodily substantially parallel to said laterally extending rod, the other fastener on the bottom of said trough being slidable along said laterally extending rod while operatively engaged thereon so as to permit such bodily movement, and the end wall of said trough carrying said spring clip being wholly beneath the roller in the operative position of said trough to permit such lateral movement to and from operative position.

4. As an article of manufacture,-a paint roller drip catcher for application to the roller supporting frame under the roller and above the handle portion of said frame, the same comprising an elongated generally rectangular trough having a Hat horizontal narrow bottom wall and upwardly diverging side Walls at an included angle of approximately 60 and parallel end walls closing the ends of the trough and extending upwardly from the bottom wall approximately one-third the height of the side walls, and a pair of fasteners, one of which is fixed on the bottom wall intermediate the ends thereof and extending downwardly therefrom, and the other of which is fixed on one end well and extending outwardly therefrom.

References tilted in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,778,050 Meinhardt Jan. 22, 1957 2,807,040 Adams et al Sept. 24, 1957 2,817,869 Hughes Dec. 31, 1957 2,902,706 Gaetke Sept. 3, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 547,401 Belgium May 15, 1956 

1. IN COMBINATION, A PAINT ROLLER OF ELONGATED CYLINDRICAL FORM HAVING AN AXLE EXTENDING AXIALLY THERETHROUGH, AND A RADIALLY DISPOSED SUPPORTING AND OPERATING HANDLE EXTENDING IN RADIALLY SPACED RELATION TO THE AXLE AND ROLLER INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS THEREOF AND HAVING A ROD RIGID WITH AND EXTENDING LATERALLY FROM THE INNER END OF THE HANDLE IN PARALLEL RELATION TO THE AXLE AND HAVING A RIGHT ANGLE OUTER END PORTION PARALLEL TO ONE END OF THE ROLLER AND RIGIDLY CONNECTED WITH ONE END OF THE AXLE, AN ELONGATED GENERALLY RECTANGULAR TROUGH THAT HAS A FLAT HORIZONTAL BOTTOM WALL AND UPWARDLY DIVERGING SIDE WALLS AND PARALLEL END WALLS CLOSING THE ENDS OF THE TROUGH AND EXTENDING UPWARDLY FROM THE BOTTOM WALL A FRACTION OF THE HEIGHT OF THE SIDE WALLS, SAID TROUGH BEING OPEN ON TOP AND LONGER AND WIDER THAN THE ROLLER AND IN THE OPERATIVE POSITION OF SAID TROUGH BEING DISPOSED IN SPACED PARALLEL RELATIONSHIP TO SAID ROLLER BETWEEN IT AND THE LATERALLY EXTENDING ROD WITH THE OPEN TOP OF SAID TROUGH TOWARD THE ROLLER, AND A PAIR OF FASTENERS FOR RIGIDLY BUT DETACHABLY SECURING SAID TROUGH IN ITS SINGLE FIXED OPERATIVE RELATIONSHIP TO SAID HANDLE AND ROLLER, ONE OF SAID FASTENERS FIXED ON THE BOTTOM OF SAID TROUGH INTERMEDIATE THE ENDS THEREOF AND DETACHABLY ENGAGING SAID LATERALLY EXTENDING ROD, AND THE OTHER FIXED ON ONE END OF SAID TROUGH AND DETACHABLY ENGAGING THE RIGHT ANGLE OUTER END PORTION OF SAID LATERALLY EXTENDING ROD. 